What I’ve Learned First-Hand
by Becky Price
When our oldest son applied to an out-of-state four-year college, we included his transcript along with a copy of his high school diploma, and he was accepted with no other records necessary. When our second son applied to an out-of-state technical school a couple years after he graduated from our homeschool, we sent his transcript and diploma as we had done before. Imagine our surprise when we received an email from them requesting a long list of additional evidence of his education – even requiring it to be notarized!
Here is the list of what we were required to submit:
-Home school requirements
-Curriculum
-Books listing
-Dates of attendance
-Attendance requirements
-Instructor/teacher of curriculum
-Assessment method that was used to determine if the student was ready to reach the next level or to be considered complete with the subject knowledge
-Transcript or records from high school (if attended)
Fortunately, I had kept careful records of all of this. The only thing I did not have were attendance requirements, since we do not have homeschool attendance requirements in WV under 18-8-1(c)(2). I explained this to admissions, and that was acceptable.
Maintaining an accurate and detailed record of your child’s high school studies is an important task for parents. Not only does it help greatly when preparing a transcript, but it can also become a necessity in a situation like ours, since West Virginia’s diploma-fairness law does not apply in other states.
Keep the records on file even after your child has graduated, because plans often change as graduates grow through early adulthood. I also recommend keeping these records beginning in junior high, so that it becomes second-nature by high school.
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